When Val (Regina Casé) left her home to work thousands of miles away as a live-in housekeeper for Fabinho (Michel Joelsas) in Sao Paulo, she carried the guilt of leaving her young daughter Jessica behind with relatives. Now, 13 years later, Jessica (Camila Márdila) shows up in Sao Paulo, and her presence throws into disarray the unspoken class barriers within Fabinho’s home. – Chicago Critics Film Festival 2014

“This is the sort of savvy, socially conscious crowdpleaser that occupies a rare middle ground between genteel and intellectual world cinema.” – Geoff Berkshire, Variety

Kate is in the middle of preparations for her 45th wedding anniversary when her husband Geoff suddenly receives news which pulls him back into the past. Fifty years ago his then girlfriend had a fatal accident in the Swiss Alps. Now, finally, her body has been found, frozen in ice and time. Kate and Geoff are both shocked but are unable to share their insecurity with each other. He retreats ever more into a distant world of memories whilst Kate endeavours to suppress her burgeoning jealousy and anxiety with pragmatism. She needs to concentrate on selecting the music and menu for the party and taking care of the other arrangements.
Outwardly, everything is business as usual. But the camera cautiously registers how a well-tuned coexistence is going out of kilter. Whether over a shared breakfast or a lonely wander through the town, Kate feels more and more like a stranger in her own life. 45 Years tells the story of two people who, caught up in unexpected emotions, are forced to bolster themselves against unfamiliar feelings and, in doing so, have the rug pulled out from under their feet. After 45 years, which feeling will prevail on the couple's big day? – Berlin Film Festival 2015
Wednesday 24 February – Fidelio, Alice’s JourneyFidelio, l’odyssee d’Alice
Dir: Lucie Borleteau, France 2014, 94 mins, Cert: CLUB
Language: French
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7UlMYgTbmo

The ‘journeys’ that Alice (a wonderfully free-spirited Ariane Labed) sets off on are physical, sexual and emotional. She has become a sailor – working as a mechanic on freighters – not necessarily to see the world but rather to find herself.

When she boards the rickety Fidelio as a last minute replacement for a crew member killed in an accident, she finds the captain is her former lover Gael (Melville Poupaud).

Labed won the best actress award at the Locarno Film Festival for her performance. – Edinburgh International Film Festival 2015Best Actress, Locarno Film Festival 2014Europa Cinemas Label Award, Locarno Film Festival 2014
★★★★ The Irish Times

Winner of the Golden Bear at this year’s Berlinale, Panahi’s latest is perhaps his most playful film yet. Riffing on the narrative structure pioneered in Kiarostami’s 10, it’s mostly set and entirely shot from inside a car: a taxi of sorts, with Panahi playing himself as an affable amateur cabbie. After giving rides around Tehran to a motley array of passengers – from a rabid reactionary and a liberal teacher to a man selling pirate DVDs and women heading to a shrine – he finally collects his niece, a sassy youngster making a little movie herself for school. Cue a discussion of how film should represent reality (or not!): a subject clearly close to Panahi’s heart, given his standing with the Iranian authorities. Despite its concern with ethics, aesthetics and politics, the film oozes disarming charm and mischievous wit, slyly reminding us that cinema, for better or worse, always trades in illusion. - Geoff Andrew, BFI London Film Festival 2015

Antoine (Gustave Kervern) is a forty-something rock singer with insomnia and stage fright. After deciding that a music career is too stressful, he decides to look for another job. Despite Antoine having no relevant experience, retired resident Serge (Feodor Atkine) is persuaded by his wife Mathilde (Catherine Deneuve) to employ him as the caretaker for their quiet Parisian apartment building.

As Antoine gets to grips with the quirky characters inhabiting the apartments, it quickly becomes obvious that he is unable to handle his new responsibilities. But when Mathilde’s mental state comes into question, she finds a friend and confidante in Antoine.

Salvadori and his actors skillfully use humour here to sensitively explore some serious themes, including mental health and loneliness.Presented with the support of the French Embassy and the Institut Français.

The Grump (Antti Litja) is a stubborn, sour-faced old farmer with a rose-tinted view of the past. After a bad fall, he is forced to move from his family farm to the city home of his career-focussed daughter-in-law. Struggling to exist in this new world, the old man seems to do nothing but clash with everyone around him. But slowly it becomes apparent that the old fellow could still teach the modern world a trick or two!

Based on the popular novel by Finnish author Tuomas Kyrö, The Grump is a charming and comedic culture-clash satire from up-and-coming director Dome Karukoski (Lapland Odyssey).